Agence France Presse
March 5 2010
Turkey urges US to block ‘genocide’ bill
By Sibel Utku Bila (AFP) `
ANKARA ‘ Turkey reacted angrily on Friday to a US Congress panel’s
resolution calling the Ottoman-era massacre of Armenians "genocide"
warning of damage to US ties and efforts to reconcile with Armenia.
Having recalled its ambassador immediately after the resolution was
adopted, Ankara warned that Washington risked a showdown with a key
Muslim ally if the resolution advanced to a full vote at the House of
Representatives.
Turkey is "seriously disturbed" that President Barack Obama’s
administration "did not put enough weight" behind efforts to prevent
the resolution from being passed by the Foreign Affairs Committee,
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said.
"We expect the US administration to make more efficient efforts from
now on," he said.
"We hope Turkish-US ties will not be put to a new test … otherwise,
the prospect that we will face will not be a positive one," he added,
calling the issue a "matter of national honour."
The committee passed the non-binding resolution on Thursday by a slim
23-22 margin, ignoring pressure from Turkey and the White House.
Davutoglu said Turkey would consider counter-action, but did not
elaborate, saying only that consultations with the recalled envoy
"could take a long time."
President Abdullah Gul has warned that "Turkey will not be responsible
for the negative ramifications this vote may have in every field."
NATO member Turkey is a prominent Muslim partner in US efforts to
stabilise Afghanistan and Iraq, and lies on a key route taking oil and
natural gas to Western markets.
The US army has long used a Turkish base for operations in Afghanistan
and Iraq, and US companies have won lucrative tenders to arm the
Turkish military.
Davutoglu said the resolution also raised the "the risk of stopping"
bridge-building efforts with Armenia and stressed that Turkey would
not bow to pressure to ratify a troubled peace deal with its eastern
neighbour.
"We are determined to normalise Turkish-Armenian ties but we are
against this being secured through the intervention of third parties
and through pressure," he said.
The non-binding resolution calls on Obama to ensure that US foreign
policy reflects an understanding of the "genocide" and to label the
mass killings as such in his annual statement on the issue.
Following US-backed talks to end decades of hostility, Turkey and
Armenia signed a deal in October to establish diplomatic relations and
open their border.
But the process has already hit obstacles, with Ankara accusing
Yerevan of trying to tweak the terms of the deal and Yerevan charging
that Ankara is not committed to ratifying the accord.
Davutoglu said the Armenian massacres should be studied by historians
and lashed out at US lawmakers for passing a judgement as part of
"local political games."
Stressing that only another "no" vote would have killed the
resolution, he said: "One vote would have changed the flow of
history… How can history be taken so lightly?"
Armenians say up to 1.5 million people were killed during World War I
as the Ottoman Empire was falling apart, a claim supported by several
other countries.
Turkey argues 300,000 to 500,000 Armenians and at least as many Turks
died in what was a civil strife when Armenians rose up against their
Ottoman rulers and sided with invading Russian troops.
Washington has traditionally condemned the killings, but refrained
from calling them a "genocide," anxious not to strain relations with
Turkey.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had urged the committee not to
hold the vote for fear it might harm Armenia-Turkey reconciliation.
"We do not believe the full Congress will or should act on that
resolution," she said.
Obama pledged during his election campaign to recognise the massacres
as genocide, but has so far refrained from using the term.
During a visit to Turkey in April, Obama said he retained his view
that the killings amounted to genocide but stressed that
reconciliation between the two neighbours was more important.